Deshields (James T.) Papers, 1815-1944
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Texas A&M University-San Antonio Digital Commons @ Texas A&M University-San Antonio Finding Aids: Guides to the Collection Archives & Special Collections 2020 DeShields (James T.) Papers, 1815-1944 DRT Collection at Texas A&M University-San Antonio Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.tamusa.edu/findingaids Recommended Citation DRT Collection at Texas A&M University-San Antonio, "DeShields (James T.) Papers, 1815-1944" (2020). Finding Aids: Guides to the Collection. 157. https://digitalcommons.tamusa.edu/findingaids/157 This Book is brought to you for free and open access by the Archives & Special Collections at Digital Commons @ Texas A&M University-San Antonio. It has been accepted for inclusion in Finding Aids: Guides to the Collection by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Texas A&M University-San Antonio. For more information, please contact [email protected]. James T. DeShields Papers, 1815-1944 Descriptive Summary Creator: DeShields, James Thomas (1861-1948) Title: James T. DeShields Papers Dates: 1815-1944 Creator James Thomas DeShields was a Texas historian and prominent writer Abstract: and collector of Texas history books, photographs, and manuscripts. Content Representing a lifetime interest in historical research and writing, the Abstract: James T. DeShields papers gather a portion of the manuscripts and source material produced and collected by the Texas writer. Identification: Col 882 Extent: 16 document boxes, 1 oversize box Language: Materials are in English Repository: DRT Collection at Texas A&M University-San Antonio Biographical Note James Thomas DeShields was born in Louisiana in 1861 and moved with his family to Bell County, Texas, about 1867. Growing up in the vicinity of Salado, Texas, DeShields was fascinated by stories of the Texas frontier, forming a lifelong interest in the history of Anglo-American settlement of the state, particularly the conflicts of the Texas revolution and Indian-settler warfare. At an early age, DeShields began collecting books on Texas history, fostered by his first adult job as a book agent. After his marriage, he began a career as a merchant, owning dry goods stores in Honey Grove, Farmersville, San Marcos and Dallas. He continued to add to his store of sources on history, soliciting narratives from Texas pioneers and artwork depicting the events described. DeShields’ first published works were short sketches for newspapers in Belton and Fort Worth. His first book was published in 1886, a slim volume on the capture of Cynthia Ann Parker by the Comanche. He contributed to Indian Depredations in Texas by J.W. Wilbarger, and produced a second work under his own name in 1912, Border Wars of Texas. Other works include The Fergusons” Jim and Ma”: The Stormy Petrals in Texas Politics, 1932, and Tall Men With Long Rifles, 1935, based on a manuscript purchased from John Warren Hunter. Finally, in 1940, DeShields published They Sat in High Place, a collection of biographies of the chief executives of Texas. DeShields married Enola Huddleston in 1886. They were the parents of three daughters. DeShields died in 1948 in Dallas, where he had lived since 1914. Provenance Note The James T. DeShields papers came to the DRT Library as part of the William E. Howard collection of Texana, donated by Howard in the 1940s. Howard had purchased the papers from DeShields, along with books and artwork, probably in several parts. In organizing his collection, it appears that Howard may have dispersed DeShields papers throughout, joining it with material acquired from other sources. A description of the collection published by Howard, Calendar of the Howard Collection of Texana; A Collector's Item, indicates that the DeShields material was not segregated from other items. This arrangement appears to have continued for some period of time after the Howard collection came to the DRT Library. At some point, the DeShields items were identified and organized as a separate unit, though it appears that some of the arrangement imposed by Howard was continued. Some items rehoused in various ways or separated from the papers, either by Howard or by the library, are described in the scope note below. Scope and Content Note Representing a lifetime interest in historical research and writing, the James T. DeShields papers gather a portion of the manuscripts and source material produced and collected by the Texas writer. The papers are organized into three series: I. Writings Found in this series are the published and unpublished articles and chapters produced by DeShields. Chapters and other subsections of longer works are grouped together under the titles placed on the manuscripts. The various versions of works that were eventually published are grouped together, subdivided by the different titles. Articles and chapters not identifiable as a part of a larger work are grouped together and arranged by title. All chapters and articles are listed under the title provided by the author; untitled sections are supplied with a descriptive heading, in brackets. Almost all of the book-length projects are incomplete, and many of the chapters and sections are also fragmentary. The most extensive material is associated with the biographical work on Texas presidents and governors, eventually published as They Sat in High Place. Several versions of the chapters on individual executives exist, along with sections on other topics, most of which do not appear in the published work. DeShields’ work on this project was spread over thirty or more years, and were produced under other titles, including “Presidents and Governors of Texas,” and “Sweep of a Century.” The latter title used a less name-specific approach to the subject, but still concentrated on the careers of the chief executives, and chapters under this title are included in this group. Another project that occupied DeShields for many years before its publication was the narrative life of Texas frontiersman and soldier Creed Taylor, published as Tall Men With Long Rifles. The work began as a manuscript by John Warren Hunter, based on his interviews with Taylor. DeShields purchased Hunter’s manuscript in 1907, and its fragmentary remains are placed in this series along with DeShields’ work. The project again went through several title changes; these are grouped together, as are Creed Taylor chapters lacking an overall title. Because of DeShields’ habit of rewriting, reusing and reordering earlier work, few of the works in the papers show a coherent narrative, and there are many fragmentary sections and unidentified pages. It is also likely that any existing order to the papers was altered when the manuscripts were acquired by William E. Howard, who appears to have arranged material by subject. Howard also bound some of the manuscripts and supplied a cover title, though these are still in fragmentary form in many cases. II. Research material In researching his writings, DeShields corresponded with a wide range of individuals, solicited narratives from other writers, and collected source material. This series gathers that material, organized into subseries by material type. His correspondents include many Texas pioneers or their descendants, who often include short narratives and reminiscences with their letters. Other letters were received in response to inquiries directed to libraries, archives and other institutions in Texas and beyond. Some of the correspondents are Oscar B. Colquitt, Charles Alston Cook, C.C. Cummings, W.T Davidson, Andrew Davis, John C. Duval, John S. Ford, Z.T. Fulmore, Charles A. Hotchkiss, John Warren Hunter, Harry A. and Ruskin McArdle, Robert, Emily and Julian Onderdonk, C.W. Raines, John W. Sansom, Joseph D. Sayers, Clarence R. Wharton, Dudley G. Wooten, and William P. Zuber. Collected writings include those solicited from witnesses and participants in frontier life and events, and those produced by researchers hired by DeShields. Notable among the former are Texas Ranger John Salmon Ford, who supplied DeShields with narratives of his activities and biographies of other notable individuals; Andrew Jackson Sowell, who wrote short descriptions of battles between Indians and settlers; Taylor Thompson, who wrote extensively on individuals and events; and William Physick Zuber, who produced autobiographical and biographical works. The latter category includes journalist E.H. Loughery, who researched and wrote on Texas political history, portions of which were incorporated into They Sat in High Place; and Dudley G. Wooten, who produced biographies of Sam Houston. Some of these works were also bound by Howard. DeShields also collected various documents, both in their original form and as transcripts, published material, and photographs. A scrapbook containing both sections of DeShields’ writings and newspaper clippings is found in this series. Documents that refer to the purchase and sale of DeShields’ writings and source material are also here. The DeShields’ papers originally included many more photographs, drawings and prints, and newspaper clippings; these have been separated to other parts of the library collection. Many of these photographs, drawings, and prints can be identified as part of the papers. No attempt has been made to list these items; however, many can be found by searching the library catalog. Newspaper clippings have been transferred to vertical files. Many of the clippings dating from the first few decades of the 1900s are likely from the DeShields papers, but positive identification